Category Archives: Writing/Progymnasmata

Middle Eastern Fables Just as European authors found inspiration in the fables of Aesop, middle Eastern authors found inspiration in the fables of Bidpai.  You may have noticed when you were reading the Indian fables, that the fables were stories within other stories.  The fables of Bidpai, translated into Persian and retitled Kalīla wa-Dimna (KalilaContinue reading “Progymnasmata for the High School Student – Year One, Week Four”

French Fables You have most likely encountered Aesop’s fables in prose translation, but even in Greek antiquity, authors wrote versions of them in both prose and verse.  After Aesop, the most well-known fablist, definitely in the French-speaking world, but likely well beyond, is Jean de la Fontaine, who wrote verse fables in the 17th century. Continue reading “Progymnasmata for the High School Student – Year One, Week Three”

Aesop’s fables come from Greek antiquity, and we shall soon explore their legacy in Western literature.  This week, we will look at another ancient tradition of fables, that of India, whose connections to Aesop and its own legacy in Western literature form a complex web of transmission and influence.  The earliest collection of Indian fablesContinue reading “Progymnasmata for the High School Student – Year One, Week Two”